Sas-ehgine



W. E. ROBERTS.

GAS ENGINE.

APPLICATION HLED MAR.30. I917.

Patented Aug. 19, 1919.

ZLii 77" 2a 3/ JJ 17 WILLIAM E. ROBERTS, RIVERDALE, OREGON.

GAS-ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 19, 1919.

Application filed March 30, 191?. Serial No. 158,583.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, \VILLIAH E. Roennrs, a citizen of the United States, residing in Riverdale, county of Multnomah, and State of Oregon, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gas-Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to gas, or internal combustion, engines, and more particularly to an improved rotary valve for controlling the supply of explosive mixture to the cylinders, and the exhaust of the burnt gases therefrom.

a One of the salient objects of my invention is to provide a rotary valve of tapered form, with means for yieldingly holding said tapered valve seated in a tapered valve casing, but in such manner as will not interfere with. the rotation of said valve member therein for the purpose of controlling the inlet and exhaust of the explosive mixture to and from the cylinders.

In order to explain my invention I have illustrated one practical embodiment thereof in the accompanying sheet of drawings, which I will now describe.

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view taken longitudinally of a gas engine embodying my invention, being asection taken on line 1 f s- 2;

. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross sectional View, taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view through the valve casing showing the valve advanced a quarter turn from the position thereof shown in Fig. 1; a

Fig. 41 is a similar sectional view showing the valve advanced a further quarter turn;

Fig.5 is a similar view showing the valve advanced astill further quarter turn;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 6-6 of 1;

Fig. 7 is a developed view, being a circumferential view of the cooperating hublike portions on the adjacent ends of two valve members, showing the rollers intended to cause the rotary movement of the valve members by engagement with theover-lapping hub-like portions of said valve members; and

Fig. 8 is an enlarged perspective view of oneof the valve sections.

Referring now to the drawings more in detail, my invention as here shown comprises four cylinders 1, 2, 3 and l, within which are mounted, respectively, four pistons 5, 6, 7 and 8, each connected with a crank shaft 9, having bearings at 1010, and provided at one end with a wheel or pulley 11, and at its other end with a beveled gear 12, which meshes with a beveled gear 13, on a vertical shaft 14, provided at its upper end with a beveled gear 15, which meshes with a beveled gear 16, on a shaft 17 which extends through a valve casing 18, provided with a water jacket 19, said valve casing being closed at its opposite ends by means of end caps, as 20 and 21, which form bearing boxes for the opposite ends of the valve shaft 17.

Mounted within the valve casing 18, are four bearings or lining sleeves 22, 23, 2 1 and 25, of straight cylindrical form on their outer diameters, and of tapering cylindrical form on their inner diameters, said bearing sleeves being placed within the valve casing in pairs with their larger inner diameters adjacent each other. For example, the bearing sleeves 22 and 23, form a chamber whose larger diameter is at their meeting edges and which chamber tapers toward its opposite ends. This is also true of bearing sleeves 21 and 25, At the 'oint between bearing sleeves 23 and 24, the smaller inner diameters thereof are in register with each other. Mounted within said bearing sleeves in the valve chamber and on the valve rod 17, are four tapered valve members, 26, 27, 28 ancl 29, each of said valve members being proviced inwardly from its opposite ends with longitudinally and circumferentially extending cavities, or pockets, as 26 and 26 27 (27 not seen in Fig. 1), 28 and 28 29 and 29*, the pockets, or cavities, differentiated'with the letter a opening in one direction, and those differentiated by the letter b opening in the opposite direction. Said cavities or pockets also have longitudinally extending outlets radially through the sides of the valve members, adapted to register with the communicating openings into the cylinders 1, 2, 3 and 4, said valve openings, where shown, being designated 27 and 29. Mounted on the shaft 17, in the ends of valve members are expansion rings 17, to prevent leakage through the valve members around the shaft 17.

The adjacent ends of said tapered valve members are provided with hub-like clutch extension portions as 30 and 31, of irregular form, the portion 30 being clearly shown in Fig. 8, the hub-like extensions on the two adjacent valve members being adapted to overlap each other with a coiled spring 32, surrounding both of said overlapping hublike portions. The shaft 17 is provided between the pairs of valve members with through pins 17*, upon the opposite ends of which, at the opposite sides of the shaft 17, are mounted two. rollers 33. The relationships of these parts may be understood from Fig. 7. Attention is called to the fact that the rollers 33-33 would engage the hub-like ,extensions 30 and 31, on the valve members for the purposeof rotating said valve mem bers whensaid shaft 17 is rotated. In the preferredform of the invention said rollers engage inclined cam portions, as 31P,

- thus not only tending to give a rotary motion to said valve members, when said shaft is driven, but alsoto cause a slight longitudinal movement thereof out of their seats, by reason of the cam action between the rollers and the cam surfaces of the hub-like extensions engaged thereby. The springs 32, interposed between adjacent valve memhere, tend to normally move said valve mem bers apart, and to cause them to seat in the tapered bearing sleeves, or linings, within the valve casing. I

Said valve casing is provlded with two intake openings, as 34 and 35, which may be connected with the usual intake mania folds, the intakes being preferably between the valve members between which are placed the expansion springs 32, whereby said expansion springs are not over-heated as they would, be were .the exhaust through these openings, The exhaust openings are designated 36, 37 and 38,- and may also be connected with a suitable exhaust manifold, not,

shown.

Thus it will be seen that as the valve members are simultaneously rotated by the shaft.17, their intake and exhaust pockets, or cavities, are alternately moved into register with the inlets to the respective cylin ders 1,- 2, 3 and 4. In Fig. 1 the inlet is closed and. compression is about to take place;v in cylinder 1. In cylinder 2, the intake is about to take place, the valve '27 being in a position whereby its pocket 27 is in, register with the inlet to said cylinder and also is in communication with the intake openings 34-. In cylinder-3, the entrance to the cylinder is closed and the firing or explosion is about to take place, while in cylinder 4, the exhaust is about to take place, the valve 29 being so positioned that its pocket, or cavity, 29", opens said cylinder to the exhaust outlets 38. 1

Thus by the turning of the four valve members each cylinder is successively opened to a supply of explosive mixture,

then closed for compression and firing, and then opened lnto communicatlon with the exhaust outlet. Said valve members are turned by the engagement of the rollers Attention is called to the fact thatby having a tapered valve member seated in the tapered seat, with means for yieldmgly holding it to the valve seat, means is thus provided for maintaining a film of oil be'-' tween the valve member surface and its valve seat. The tendency of the valve member, when revolved, in the valve seat will be to move slightly longitudinally away from its seat. While it is believed amass" action will take place, because of the tapered form of the valve member, I have also provided a cam action between the driving shaft for the valve members and the valve members, which will operate to produce a' slight movement of the valve members, away from their seats and against the tension of the springs-between thevalve members. This general construction, it will readily be seen, will take care of any expansion and contraction which may be due to variation of the temperature of either the valve member or the valve casing, and also takes care .of any slight variation in the relative sizes of the valve members and their valve seats. V

While I have shown the preferred em bodiment of my invention, I am aware that changes can be made. the details ashere shown and described, without departing from the spirit thereof, and I do not, therefore, limit the invention to the details shown, except" as I may be limited by. the hereto appended claims. i i

v 1. In a gasengine,.in combination, a plurality of cylinders, a valve casing common to all of said cylinders and havingcommw nicating passageways thereto, a plurality of tapered valve members rotatably seated in said valve casing and each provided with.

pockets adapted to be moved alternately into register with a communicating passageway to one of said cylinders, means between said valve members, for rotating the same,

and means therebetween for normally and 'from, av plurality of tapered valves rotatably seated end to end in said valve seats,

and each provided with oppositely opening pockets adapted to be moved alternately into register with one of the passageways from said valve casing, a driving shaft extending through said valve casing and through said valve members with driving means therefor operating therebetween, and driving connections between said driving shaft and said tapered valve members for rotating the same, said driving connections being interposed between the adjacent ends of each pair of tapered valve members, the pairs of said tapered valve members being spaced apart, substantially as described.

3. In a gas engine, a valve casing having tapered valve seats and passageways therefrom, a plurality of tapered valve members rotatably seated in said valve seats and each provided with oppositely opening pockets adapted to be moved alternately into register with one of the passageways from said valve casing, a driving shaft extendin through said valve casing and through sai valve members with driving means therefor, driving connections between said driving shaft and said tapered valve members for rotating the same, said driving connections being interposed between the adjacent ends of each pair of tapered valve members, the

pairs of said tapered valve members being spaced apart, and a spring interposed between the pairs of tapered valve members and operating to normally move them apart and into their respective valve seats.

4. In an engine, a valve casing having tapered valve seats therein, two tapered valve members rotatably seated in said valve seats at a space apart, means for driving them together in the same direction, and means interposed therebetween normally moving said valve members apart and into their respective valve seats.

5. In an engine, a valve casing having tapered valve seats therein, two tapered valve members rotatably seated in said valve seats at a space apart, driving means interposed between said valve members for driving them together in the same direction, and means therebetween normally moving said valve members apart and into their respective valve seats.

Signed at Portland, Multnomah county, Oregon, this 23rd day of March, 1917.

WILLIAM E. ROBERTS.

In presence of- I. M. GRIFFIN, W. H. BLEVINS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, I). G. 

